Big, Bold, and Vibrant, CLASSIC ROCK Showcases Rock n' Roll Standards

In Maine State Music Theatre's second 2022 concert series program, the Pickard Theater pulsates with the big, bold, vibrant musical energy of Joe Boucher and his band, vocalists and a seventeen-piece orchestra, treating a cheering audience to a playlist of rock and roll classics from the 1970s and 1980s. Boucher, who managed to sell out the house even during the 2021 pandemic-era performances, returns triumphantly with his talented instrumental ensemble and two charismatic lead vocalists who collaborate with Ben McNaboe and the MSMT Orchestra to create a rich and unforgettable aural tapestry.

Visceral sound is front and center in this program with Boucher playing keyboards and acoustic guitar - fleet-fingered, exuberant and extroverted - in covers of songs by Benatar, Boston, Styx, Queen, Kiss, Stevie Nicks, Toto, Heart, Asia, Meatloaf, Kansas and others. He is joined by three other dynamic rock musicians who harmonize thrillingly in the multi-textured orchestrations by Chris Eastburn, who also plays bass guitar. A brilliant Gary Backstrom on guitar and an electric Steve Hodgkin on drums add to the virtuoso mix. Susie Pepper and Johnny Martinez perform the lion's share of the vocals with Boucher covering two songs. Both Pepper and Martinez are vocal powerhouses. Pepper has a dazzling range capable of scaling exciting heights, and Martinez sings with a passion and a penchant for improvised choreography - which, on this occasion - had him lithely leaping across the pit to the passerelle or running down aisles and jumping on empty seats. The chemistry between the pair is obvious, as is their sense of sly humor and the ability to dramatize songs especially in duets.

Perhaps what makes this program so unique is the seamless combination of electronic instruments with the acoustic timbre of the symphonic orchestra. Rather than seeming at odds with each other, the two soundscapes harmonize beautifully, using the contrast of styles to advantage and finding hidden nuances in the music. Music Director Ben McNaboe conducts the onstage forces with confidence, clarity, and commanding style.

The program features nineteen evergreen standards, arranged in an appealing sequential flow. The performers' engagement with the songs and their composers is palpable and infectious. Among this critic's personal favorites were: Pepper and Martinez in a full-throated rendition of Styx's "Come Sail Away" with lush accompaniment of full orchestra; the deliciously characterful interpretation by Pepper and Martinez of Meatloaf's "Paradise by the Dashboard Light;" the rousing Boston hit "More Than a Feeling" performed by the entire company; Martinez's wistful reading of Kansas' "Dust in the Wind;" and Boucher's delivery of Electric Light Orchestra's "Sweet Talking Woman."

MSMT's production team handled the visual and technical aspects of the concert skillfully with the musicians, instruments, speakers, and equipment all arranged within the set for the main stage show of JOSEPH AND THE AMAZING TECHNICOLOR DREAMCOAT - which, with its hieroglyphic panels as backdrops, lent an exotic flavor. The lighting in deep oranges, mauves, greens and other fluctuating colors adds a kinetic dimension to the musical one, and the sound is perfectly balanced - no small feat here with so many musicians and singers in a sometimes quirky space.

Like last year's PIANO MEN, Boucher knows how to program a mesmerizing concert and engage his audience. He serves up nostalgia combined with a freshness of layered sound and a raw honesty of emotion that speaks directly to the senses and the heart, gripping his cheering, clapping audience and holding them in thrall.

Photograph courtesy of MSMT

CLASSIC ROCK runs for three performances from July 10-11 at MSMT's Pickard Theater on the Bowdoin campus, 1 Bath Road, Brunswick, ME www.msmt.org 207-725-8769

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